I’m Flash. I’m a brown Kelpie bitza and I ride on my owners bike in Sydney too. Sometimes I’m even allowed on the motorbike! I’m excited about your trip and look forward to the updates. We’ll be chipping in for Cancer/ MS research because they do a good job and so do you!

G’day Flash & Co. Coffee in now in Perth, & she’ll be cracking the whip to get Carrot started on this trip in the next day or two. (Ps. If Flash is lighter than 23kgs, can I swap Coffee with him? Coffee really is getting too fat to carry!!!)

You two are going to have a great time, how exciting!!! are you going to be able to show us little videos as you go? Would love to see highlights. Well done so far!!!!!!!!!!!! ps Rosie the Rottie also sends best, says she thinks you’re great, so motivated,…….she’d rather snooze.

Hi Ken & Cathy. Was great to catch up again the other day. Just got into Perth yesterday and am currently rebuilding the bike in a caravan park at Wanneroo. Should get started south in the next day or two.

Thanks Cindy. Coffee seems happy with her new “house”. And yes, it is all pretty heavy (100kg on the airport baggage scales!!!!). I’ll give you progress reports on how to lighten a pushbike, as per Larry’s advice! Cheers, Carrot & Coffee

Ahhhh Yundu! So good to hear your concern. Not cold here yet, so no, I don’t need another dog ~ a lighter one would be good though! Do you think anyone would notice if I swaped Coffee for a Sausage Dog?!

Hi Carrot and Coffee it has been so nice to meet you both aand we hope your Journey back to Sydney goes well also we hope the weather holds out and does not rain to much before you get back. We think what you are doing is really great,

G’day Jenny & Steve. Was really good to meet you both, & thanks for all the help with my cooking & bits for the bike. Please send my regards to all there at the Wanneroo Caravan Park, as everyone there made my stay a real pleasure. I hope to get back & pay you all a visit again in the future. All the best to you all.

hello there Carrot n Coffee dog see you guys r on ya way, B crew say gday and Peachy is missing you already ? LOL ! , we will be watching you and cooffe dog all the way man all the best . Safe journey dude . cheers , from Scoot , Belle & B crew .

Carrot
Keep us up to date as u traverse this great nation of ours. When we do chat about you n coffee on B crew its always with a smile. As you draw near to the end, well you never know who you might see on the roadside EGGing you on. I’m with you scoota.
all the best, Potty

Great to meet you this morning in Trigg and again as you rode through Scarborough. Hope the photos we took for you were OK. We will be following your journey with interest. Good luck and safe travel you two!.

Hey Carrot and Coffee – glad to see you are both on the way at last. Safe & enjoyable trip.
Muffy & Jock are watching your progress Coffee from the comfort of the loungeroom!
Hope the weather is kind!! Good luck.

G’day Pete & Julie. Nice to hear from your neck of the woods. Would Jock or Muffy be interested in trading places with Coffee??? The pair of them together would still only weigh under half of Coffee’s 23kg lump!!!! Then again, I’d probably have to spend half the trip combing grass seeds out of the shaggy little pair, so I’d best stick with the Coffee Dog after all!!!

Hello Carrot and Coffee,
Was very exciting to meet you both as you set off on your journey.
Hope all goes well> will keep track of the trip and encourage others to check you out!!
Regards Linda from Wanneroo

Hi Carrot and Coffee Dog,
It was a bit unusual to see the two of you on a bike in Fremantle, we don’t see that too often here. But it was very interesting to see you both so enthusiastic about your trip and the charities you are doing this for. We are also very curious how your tarp tent will hold, certainly after a couple of months. We had a look at the tarp tent website and it looks very good!
We wish you both happy travels.
Paul & Gerrie

G’day Paul & Gerrie. I’ll be sure to keep you posted on the ongoing durability of my Scarp II Tarptent. So far I’ve been thoroughly happy with its performance, especially is the recent wind & rain! Was nice to meet you both the other day.

Spent a pleasant evening in Rockingham, camped in the front yard of a friendly local. Thanks heaps Dorothy! After a top breakfast for both Coffee & myself with the neighbours Les & Babs, we toodled off to Mandurah where we’re staying the night with some friends of Larry (my bike consultant!!!), Graham & Linda. They also have a couple of dogs, so Coffee should be well amused. I’m pretty chuffed about the idea of a real bed for the night too!

I love this blog entry Carrot. It gave us a better idea about how when what who and where of a single day on your long journey. You and Coffee are now not just a dot on the map, but in this unique position to tell us the unique stories of yours, on this unique land. You are the champion.

Hey Carrot & Coffee-Dog,
We’ve been following you each night on your tracker since you departed from us here in Trigg. You are moving at quite a tidy speed for a pair with no training-Well done! Was so lovely to have you guys stay, looks like the weather has been much more accommodating of late!? All the best on your exciting adventures ahead. Will keep in touch

Hello all. No movement over the last couple of days, while staying in Mandurah with Graham & Linda. They are top hosts, and combined with a comfy bed, hot shower & good grub, it’s not going to be easy to leave!!! Have used this time to do some more maintenance on bike & culling of excess gear that we’re still carrying. Mandurah is a delightful spot, and well worth taking the time to look around, with all the canals, mariners & esturarys. The locals are most welcoming, so our stay here has been all too short, considering how much there is to see. Needless to say, Coffee managed to make plenty of new chums, as some of the snaps that we’ll post soon will show! Anyway, will keep you all up to date as we continue on….

Left the terrific hospitality of Graham & Linda today. Didn’t get away until the arvo, so only made a few kilometres south and set up camp at Dawesville, on the shore of the Harvey Estuary. Very picturesque, but the mozzies are so bad that we have had to retire early to the sanctuary of the tent! Hoping to make some more impressive miles tomorrow….

Today we managed to get a bit further than our usual couple of kilometres, ending up camped about 40km north of Bunbury on the Old Coast Highway. A sterling day for a ride, with a chance to sample some of the regions produce (mango wine – for something different, oooh yeah!) A big Thank You again for everyone’s encouragement & donations along the way, in particular to Paul (with the speedway crew) at the Gull Settlers Roadhouse north of Bunbury – mate, the support you rallied there was absolutely fantastic! Looking to get into Bunbury sometime tomorrow….

Carrot, so wonderful to hear from you yesterday Shedding all that unwanted baggage on this big journey of a lifetime, is such a metaphor about the journey of life, and discovering true self. Wishing you lightness of heart and mind xx

Hi Carrot
It’s Tong here. I gave a little pep talk ‘bout your trip at church today…the kids were very interested. One looked up the website on an iPod on the spot! Hope you enjoy your trip!!!
Cheers
Tong

Hi Tong, I’m glad to hear that the kids were interested to hear of our trip, & thank you for telling them about it. We’re spending a couple of days looking around magic little town called Margaret River with a friend that I’ve met over here. A big Thank-You to Elise, family & friends – you’ve all made my stay here a top time! Tomorrow we’ll go back to Bunbury where I left the bike & have a chat to ABC Radio on their WA Regional Drive program at 4:45pm (6:45pm EST), to tell people in the west about what we’re doing. Then on Wednesday I’ll start to head south-east. Weather permitting….

Mate, the weather just isn’t working for you, your dog looks a little disinterested already, lots of well wishers slowing you down, this is going to be a struggle. We’re coming over the following weekend, and we should be spending the Saturday (11th) in Margaret River. I expect that we will pass you on the way…!! I’ll organise a police escort for you if you want to clear the road. Maybe you’ll get a bit of a movealong!! If not, we can always swap places for a while…. think…. no forget I said that…. “your muscles are probably bigger than mine by now” – you’d better keep going!! By the way has coffee found a little friend or two yet? Be careful she could get seriously distracted and you could lose your meal card. Say g’day to her and give her a pat from all of us here in Singo won’t ya.

Bruce & Edith says:
May 29, 2011 at 2:21 pm (Edit)
A pleasure to have met you both at the Orange Shop, Old coast rd. Myalup today. Glad you enjoyed you Emu Pie! Have a safe journey over East and look after Coffee-Dog. She is a beauty.
Regards, Bruce & Edith

Kirsty says:
May 30, 2011 at 8:33 am
Hey Carrot,
It was great to meet you and the gorgeous coffeedog on Saturday at the Settlers Roadhouse, north of Myalup. You are doing a fantastic thing and this world would be a better place if there were more people like you in it. I wish you both a safe journey and hope the nights arent too cold for you. I will be checking daily for progress updates and photos. Take care!!!
All the best,
Kirsty

Steven and Karin says:
May 31, 2011 at 10:05 am
Hello Carrot and Coffee Dog,
I hope you remember us we spoke to you in the main street of Bunbury just before your radio interview, it was great to spend those great few minutes finding out about your adventure on the road with coffee dog, we will follow your trip as we progress on ours, yours to the East and ours to the north of WA.
Ride Safe Karin and Steven.

Hi Laura & Adam. Nice to hear from you good folks over east! Yes, we certainly are having a ball – & a good, slow one at that. Pretty much in vogue with most things that we do…. Some things just never change, do they?!

As you may have noticed from the tracking map, we have started to move east & have set up camp in a great little town called Donnybrook. The people here are among the friendliest that I have ever met! It’s a long weekend & the traffic is pretty full on, so we may stay here a couple of days & enjoy the hospitality until the roads quieten down a bit. As for Coffee – well what can I say?! If all the kisses she gets from the ladies were currency, we’d have more money in the bank than Bondy! Seriously though, this dog must have been some sort of siren in a former life! I just want to know what her secret is….

Was great to meet you and the amazing coffee dog today at the Donnybrook bakery.
We think what you are doing is fantastic and wish you both all the best in your travels. We will watch this page for your photos and to follow you on your travels. Hope you both stay safe and warm,

A delight to meet you all. The Donnybrook Bakery certainly is a great place to meet so many top people like yourselves! We’ll try to keep the photo’s updated, though we can only download them when we have access to a computer, so we’ll do the best we can with what’s available. Hope you enjoy the ones we do send through.
All the best, Coffee & The Carrot.

Hi Carrot and Coffee dog
It was lovely to meet you both in Donnybrook this morning, all the best for a safe journey across the rest of WA, SA,VIC and NSW. I will look forward to following your adventures, may you succeed in your fund raising. The town of Donnybrook looks forward to your return visit one day.
God Bless
Deborah

Heard about you from Khia at the Donnybrook chemist, and you met my sister and bil and Wandy at Noggerup.
Hope you have smooth cycling all the way, and it doesn’t get too cold on the way. take care
Kate

Thanks Kate. I’m sorry we didn’t get a chance to meet you in person. Your family were terrific hosts to us at Noggerup. Hopefully, the smooth cycling will be assisted by a westerly wind for the rest of the trip….

No “might” about it – believe me, the trots are a guarantee if you eat too much in one sitting! And that’s the voice of experience speaking, oh great “Master Jerky Maker” that you are!!!! But credit where it’s due Cretty, you really do make the best there is to be had!

Hi Ella, and thanks for writing to us. It was great to be at your school today. Coffee really enjoyed herself too, when she was running around and meeting you all. We’ll stay out of all the trucks way, & keep you all up to date along our travels. Bye for now, Carrot & Coffee Dog.

Donnybrook wasn’t an easy place to leave, such was the hospitality. There were so many great folk that we met, & in particular I would like to wish the best Khia & her family. It is people like yourselves – both enlightening & inspirational – that have motivated me to do this trip. You are all in our thoughts. But it was time to move on & we headed east to stay the night at a charming little place called Noggerup. Our hosts there, Dennis, Colin, Suzie, Wandy & Fruity made for yet another wonderful stay. From there we continued south-east to Boyup Brook. While the distance covered that day was only 37km, it was by far the hardest stretch yet. That was because: 1. The hills were many, 2. There was a head on wind the whole way, 3. It was a really cold wind, 4. The dog’s getting fatter, 5. Coffee had to stay on the bike for the whole day because there were fox baits laid in the area & that means I had to lug her weight up all those hills!!!! 6. My passenger’s getting fatter! (or did I already mention that?!) Anyway, I arrived feeling like I’d just crossed the Himalayas with Coffee looking as fresh as a trout!!!! So Boyup Brook was the perfect place to spend a quiet evening recouperating. Today we enjoyed a pleasant morning taking it easy & visiting the wonderful school of St Mary’s where 77 kids attend from kindy through to Yr 7. A big thank you to Patrick for offering a place for us to stay – I’m only sorry that my legs couldn’t peddle us fast enough to reach your property before dusk. So tonight we are camped next to the old hall at Mayanup. Not so cold though, so hopefully we’ll reach Kojonup tomorrow….

Truth is Khia, ‘slight’ is not the word. It was a BIG impact, and it is I who would like to thank you for making such an inspirational impact and contributing to the purpose of this trip. We will look forward to keeping in touch.
All the very best to you & your whole family, Carrot & Coffee-Dog.

The Shepherds says:
June 9, 2011 at 9:23 am
Rots,
Great to see you in the flesh (or second-hand flesh anyway!) Great to see you having such fun and getting together a Coffe Dog fan club.
Love Snake & Cathy and Nippers galore
I love your pictures Carrot. From Rueben.

Greetings from over in the West, to Snake, Cath & the Shepherd Nippers!
We hope that you’re all keeping the East in order, during our period of absence.
As you have noticed, the Coffee-Dog fan club is coming along famously!
However, the Carrot fan club does not seem to be enjoying the same level of success.
Popularity it seems, is strongly in favour of the canine half of this duo!
Clearly, the logic in bringing Coffee along as the focus point of this fundraiser has proven to be a wise decision.
Thank God for Coffee!!!!
PS. Please thank Will & Helen for breeding from Chilli-Dog (ie. mother of Coffee-Dog, & nearly the spitting image). Who ever would have thought that one of her pups would end up perched on the back of a pushie for 5,000kms??!! It’s a far cry from penning sheep in the shearing sheds! I don’t seem to remember any shearers lining up to give her a kiss back then either….

Glad you like the pictures, Rueben. I’ll send some new ones through soon for you to see.

Pete & Julie says:
June 3, 2011 at 6:52 am
Glad to see Coffee is getting lots of hugs and kisses… shows us who is the better looking!
You are really doing great mate .. love the photos.
Cheers
Pete & Julie
PS. Should only take you 10 years to complete at this rate

scoota adams says:
June 7, 2011 at 9:37 am
Way too go carrot n coffee dog looking at your bike set up I know wich seat id be sitting on on ya coffee dog . Its great to see that you’re taking the time to stop and see the sites on you’re way. Cheers guys our thoughts are with you all the way . Cheers man all the best from scoota,belle and kids .

You’re welcome to sit on Coffee’s seat, Scoota, but I’d prefer it if you lost a heap of weight before you did!!!! Nothing personal mate, but if you could get under 24kgs that’d be just great, from my point of view….

Greetings from Kojonup, where Coffee & myself are presently toasting our toes in front of a campfire. What a wonderful way to spend an evening! I was unable to write yesterday because the road from Mayanup Hall to Kojonup was considerably more difficult than anticipated. This was because: 1. I am still VERY, VERY unfit; 2. I am now of the opinion that 70kms out of that 71km stretch was UPHILL; 3. The bike is still WAY too heavy; & 4. Coffee is still WAY too FAT!!!! Such were the reasons why I arrived in Kojonup in such a knackered state that neither my eyes, legs, fingers, brain, speech or anything else for that matter would function properly at that point in time (nothing terribly unusual about that, I suppose!) I immediately bought a huge block of chocolate, which I then proceeded to swallow whole, in much the same way as a snake would eat an emu egg! With that bit of an energy hit, I was able to pronounce words coherently enough again to be able to order a more substantial feed for both Coffee & myself. I can’t recall who suggested to me that the road from Donnybrook to Kojonup was relatively flat, but if they happen by chance to be reading this, may I be so bold as to suggest that if they attempt to travel the said route on rollerblades, they may reconsider their original verdict pertaining to the ease with which it may be manually traversed!!!! But then, this trip is all about creating something of a challenge, & in truth I’m loving every moment of it & wouldn’t have it any other way. Still, I wont mind if the road south to Mt Barker proves to be a little easier going….

Alan & Verelle says:
June 11, 2011 at 2:15 am
Hi Guys we caught up with you in the main street on Donnybrook with family from Tamworth. It was a pleasure to give you both a donation, if we had more people willing to do what you are both doing the world would be a better place (For Dogs too)

I am VERY pleased to announce that the road to Mt Barker was in fact considerably easier riding than the previous couple of stretches. Did a comfortable 40kms on Sunday & made camp on the side of the road near Tunney. From there we completed the remaining 65kms to Mt Barker where we are currently staying at the local caravan park. On the Albany Hwy just north of Mt Barker is a little place called Tenterden & it is well worth the stop at Lady Rae’s Roadhouse for a bite to eat, possibly the best chips in the world, wonderful service, & to see Carlene’s reaction when the confectionary delivery truck arrives. Seriously, she gives a whole new meaning to the word “enthusiasm” when the choccy’s being wheeled in the doorway! Good on ya Carlene, the world really would be a better place if there were more people like you, who openly showed such delight at the small pleasures to be found in everyday life. Mmmmm, speaking of chocolate, it must be about that time of day….

Mmmmmm, brownies! Sounds gooooood!!!! Oh, & I wouldn’t worry too much about Coffee keeping warm – the constant flow of ladies smothering her in hugs should be more than ample to keep her cosy, regardless of the outside temperature!

Bit of wild & woolley weather last night, so we were delighted when the offer was made for a REAL house to stay in tonight. So an EXTRA BIG thank you to Ross & Sandra at the Mt Barker Post Office for that generosity. Coffee & I have never been more contented, competing for space in front of the log fire! Another thanks also to Ross & Angie at the Mt Barker Caravan Park for the top BBQ dinner – both self & dog were fed to bursting point! Tomorrow, we’ll consider continuing on south if the weather permits, though Mt Barker has proven to be another hospitable little gem of a place, where we could happily stay for far longer….

Didnt I tell you the further south you went the friendlier people would be!!! Glad you & Coffee are making good progress, and getting well looked after. Hope youve been keeping up with her “shake you paw” training!!! I still cant get a noise out of the sheepdog whistle.
Take care and enjoy your journey
Suzie

HI Carrot & Coffee Dog , glad you enjoyed our b.b.q but my name is Jeff not Ross, easy mistake.It was a pleasure meeting you ,we left Mt Barker thursday and are now in Bunbury. We hope your travels go well and wish you both best of luck. All the best Jeff & Angie.

I can’t believe I called you Ross AGAIN! This is getting embarassing. Just to put everyone else in the picture, I kept calling Jeff “Ross” all through the evening of the BBQ! Sorry Jeff, but for some reason I’ve attached that name to your face. I’ll try to get it right next time. Hope all goes well for you & Angie in Bunbury.

Hi Carrot & Coffee dog glad to see you are still travelling well; hope the wet weather is not slowing you down too much; its quite wet and windy down in Bunbury we are looking forward to moving where its warmer. Hope coffee is going well and eating lots of good steak.We wish you the best of luck and best wishes JEFF and Angie Larner.

Hi Carrot and Coffee Dog,
We have been following your progress since your visit last week, it was great to see you and hear about your adventure. Patrick was glad you had a dry bed at Mayanup that night.
Glad to hear you are being looked after in Mt Barker and we hope your travels down south are safe and welcoming.
Looking forward to hearing your updates, good luck with the fundraising and stay safe

Hello to All there at St Mary’s Boyup Brook. Great to hear from you. I saw your property Patrick, as I went past the next day. Wish we had stopped in, as I was absolutely exhausted by the time we reached Kojonup. If we come back again, we will be sure to stop & say hello. Coffee REALLY enjoyed meeting you all & we’ll try to put a video clip on this website of that, because it was pretty funny to watch.
It was really great to meet everyone at your school.
Bye for now, Coffee-Dog & Carrot.

Hi guys its James from year 4/5 St Marys Boyup Brook,
how’s it been lately. read that the weathers been a bit harsh on you at Mt Barker, at least you got a nice cosy spot to sleep. the day you came to boyup you wold’ve past my aunty and uncles (uncools) place, if you looked youd have seen a heep of fruit trees.
got to go now James

Hi James. We’ve been lucky enough to be staying in peoples houses when the weather’s been a bit rough. Is your Aunts & Uncles place in Boyup or out of town? I’m trying to remember if I saw it.
Thanks for dropping us a line,
Coffee-Dog & Carrot.

Robert says:
June 16, 2011 at 2:04 pm
Hey Coffee and Carrot .. Are you guy’s comin via Esperance at all as I’ve heard you are bypassing this great town of ours ?? Well I have some money for you if you come via here at all ..

Hi Robert. Yes, we are definately coming to Esperance. I’m told it’s one of the “must see” places in Australia, so we’re looking forward to spending some time there. Will give to you a call when we get a bit closer, & will look forward to meeting you then.

HI CARROT N COFFEE. We have just passed you in the lovely streets of Albany. liam spotted u n we had to stop and see if it was you for sure hope u have found a fabulous place to sleep and enjoy the beaches and great atmosphere of albany. maybe u will get to see a WHALE. i hope u get a fantastic amount of donations n the total u are up to already is FANTASTIC! in just nearly month! AWSOMEEEEEEEEEEEE x ang n liam

Hi Angela & Liam. It was great to meet & chat with you both the other day. You made for an excellent welcoming committee to Albany for us!!!! Hopefully, we may bump into you again before we skip town in a few days.
Cheers for now!

So here we are at Albany. Yes, it did prove to be a battle of our willpowers to leave Mt Barker, so much so that we ended up staying 5 nights in the area. HUGE thanks to Ross & Sandra for playing great hosts & filling Coffee & self up with fine food & wine for the majority of that time! Some of you may have noticed from the tracking map that we didn’t get terribly far out of Barker before we found our next stop that was too irresistable to go past (a mere 10kms, to be honest). So my apologies to Bill & Barbra for gatecrashing your place & MANY thanks for inviting us to stay for a wonderful night & sterling dinner at your magnificent property. Yesterday we did commit ourselves to reaching Albany, where we are currently staying with our next “foster family”, Graham & Helen. I must say that meeting you both has been an absolute godsend, for your kindness, great company, meals & shelter from the elements (a few showers during the evenings, which would have been less than pleasant if we were in the tent!) Tomorrow we’ll have a chat with Andrew on Albany’s ABC radio morning program, then weather permitting, head around to see the Whaling Station at Frenchman Bay. If we go to the shoreline there, hopefully no crusty old sailor will harpoon Coffee, having accidently mistaken her for a small beached whale!!!! (Yes, she is getting that FAT from everyone constantly feeding her snacks. I am sure she is a least 4 times heavier than what she was when we started!) This could wind up being the one trans-continental push bike trip where the cargo ends up GAINING weight as the trip progresses….

By the way, thanks to Jenny & her Mobile Pet Wash at Mt Barker, Coffee who was smelling like, well… a dog, now smells like a bar of oatmeal. Seriously, she is that clean & soft that I now dry my washed hands on her in preference to using a towel….

Fantastic to see you are both making great progress through our great state Carrot!!! Sorry to hear your passenger is gaining weight! But in the end youll be the fitter one =) Perhaps she needs to wear the hanibal mask more often….LOL!
I hope Coffee-dog is still attracting lots of donations for you, monetary ones that is – not nutritional!!!
Take care out there!
Suzie

Hi Suzie, Colin, Dennis, Dogs & the Noggerup Co. You may be onto something with the Hannibal mask idea, because the nutritional donations are unlikely to ease up. Either that, or just have the bike seat for show & make Coffee run the whole way (No, no – just kidding. I can hear the Coffee fan club sharpening their knives in the background already, at the mention of that rather radical idea!)
Hope the Noggerup pups are all content too. I do plan to steal your “Kelpies” numberplate off your car one day, so I thought it only fair to warn you in advance. You’ve got to admit, it would look pretty cool on the bike, eh?!
Chin-chin!

Weather around Albany today was pretty ordinary with scattered showers all day, so spent the time in the Avanti Plus Bike Shop in Albany with the owner, doing some much needed maintanence on the rig. I cannot thank you & your staff enough, Tarquin, for the time & effort spent on that.
Rest of the day was spent just looking around Albany’s CBD & stocking up for the stretch east to come.
Staying the night yet again with Graham & Helen, my wonderful Albany hosts & saviours from the elements. Fingers crossed, we may get a break in the weather & a chance to move on tomorrow….